From the article: It might take a few more years before all of the existing SQL Server 2000 applications are upgraded to newer versions of SQL Server.

SQL 2000 SP4 drops out of the extended support phase in April 2013. After that MS won't be doing any security patches, so security holes won't get fixed and your enterprise is at risk. So you need to be planning on upgrading within the next 36 months. http://support.microsoft.com/lifecycle/?p1=2852

Yes. 36 months = 3 years, which handily falls within the range of "a few more years". Still, it's good to have a deadline, and better to be done well before it!

Why not just use something like CDO or if your server is old enough CDONTS?

Basically brings Database Mail to SQL server 2000. Just for fun I was creating sp_send_dbmail stored procs on my SQL 2000 servers that used CDO to send SMTP email out. Worked great and didn't depend on linked servers :)

I won't claim to have written it... I did modify it a bit, but I can't remember where. :)

--***************Configuring the Message Object ******************-- This is to configure a remote SMTP server. EXEC @hr = sp_OASetProperty @iMsg, 'Configuration.fields("http://schemas.microsoft.com/cdo/configuration/sendusing").Value','2'-- This is to configure the Server Name or IP address. -- Replace MailServerName by the name or IP of your SMTP Server. EXEC @hr = sp_OASetProperty @iMsg, 'Configuration.fields("http://schemas.microsoft.com/cdo/configuration/smtpserver").Value', @mailserver

We also use cdosys for our e-mail. Actually, most of my clients are fully upgraded to 2005 but our software still uses the cdosys stored proc that was written way back then for e-mail. I've never bothered configuring the database mail.

dawidjordaan (3/9/2010)This is a great article. Do you have any comments on the security side of things here? We have to follow the CIS procedures that 'outlaw' SQL Mail. Does this workaround have any security implications?

Dawid,I had configured database mail this way on few of servers. But on my servers, access control is strict, only the DBA would have sysadmin and the other team member at the most can get read access for few hours to few tables. So not sure, if there would be security implications. I didn't face issues.

mtassin (3/9/2010)Why not just use something like CDO or if your server is old enough CDONTS?

Basically brings Database Mail to SQL server 2000. Just for fun I was creating sp_send_dbmail stored procs on my SQL 2000 servers that used CDO to send SMTP email out. Worked great and didn't depend on linked servers :)

I won't claim to have written it... I did modify it a bit, but I can't remember where. :)[/code]

I will try this out and see what the auditors have to say and report back to this forum. I hope this is something I can slip by them because this would help tremendously with my management and monitoring scripts. I can tell you now that the CDO option is also out. All OLE Automation is regarded as from the devil.

It took me months before I could convince the security team the dbmail is not the same as SQL Mail.